An alternative, albeit one not fully licensed, to console football games like Madden, Quick Hit focuses on playcalling strategy rather than in-game action. The player and team progression are designed to appeal to both fantasy football and role-playing game motifs, whereby one builds a team uniquely to his style, develops its personnel and playbook, and then advances in a persistent environment among other team owners.

Quick Hit's first major update will introduce special player skills to the playcalling dynamic. Team owners will be able to implement more than 120 special moves their players can acquire as they progress. The skills range from quarterback elusiveness, to a strong safety stonewalling a ballcarrier, to punters acing a kick's placement to win the field position battle.

The update also adds 50 new plays to the game's playbook and the ability to tag them for quick access in pressure situations. Four new head coaches, announced earlier, will also face players as opposing AIs.

Quick Hit says the update will go live by Tuesday. For more information, see the site.

Quick Hit Football [site]

Battlefield Heroes passed the two million player mark in September, prompting EA to celebrate with the Heroes of the Fall game update. Now at three million, the company has released the new Sunset Showdown map. Set on an island with only one control point, it looks like the sort of place many people will die in. Then again, any shooter map looks like that to me.

"Battlefield Heroes continues to grow fast with well over 50,000 new players joining us every week. Our players have already logged in over 1,300 years' worth of game time and nearly 300million kills over 150million five-minute game rounds," said Ben Cousins, General Manager, Battlefield Heroes team. "The vast majority of our players play for free, but if they want to customize their character or enhance their game with weapon upgrades or widgets then there is a cool item for them in our store."

Visit the official Battlefield Heroes website to play the game for free.

I would have figured SOE would have gone from cats and dogs to something like hamsters or potbellied pigs, but instead they go and pull this huge pet update, with mythical and prehistorical beasts of all shapes and sizes now available. This means you can now be a fairy riding a unicorn, which I believe counts as winning the internet, according to the official rules.

Player housing is a feature players have been clamoring for since the game launched, and SOE delivers, with free apartments for everyone. Non-paying customers get a one bedroom layout, while paying subscribers get a free 2-bedroom apartment, with an option to buy a 3-bedroom condo in the game's marketplace.

A new fishing mini-game has also been added to the game, giving players 20 job levels to hook any of 30 different species of fish.

Finally, the Snow Days events are SOE's way of saying that they appreciate Christmas but don't want to commit to it in name in case someone gets offended. Expect candy, sweets, presents, and snowball fights - you know, Christmas things. Christmas. Say it with me.

You can check out all the new updates by heading over to http://www.freerealms.com/ and playing the damn game already. OR you can just live vicariously through other players with these Kotaku-exclusive screenshots. Your choice!

Pets vs. Monsters is a free-to-play MMO targeted at children between the ages of 8 and 12. Kids create an avatar, select between dogs, cats, and bears (just like at the pet store, only with bears!), and set off on an adventure destroying monsters while riding on the back of their trusted companion.

Like Sony Online Entertainment's Free Realms, Pets vs. Monsters will integrate streaming technology, allowing children to start playing within minutes of download. Parents worried about exposing their children to foul language and internet predators need not worry, as Funcom has included a constructed chat system to ensure that no foul words pass their players' fingertips.

Check out the game in action, along with a couple of screens, or visit the game's website for more information.

Marty Schottenheimer, Jerry Glanville, Marv Levy and Herm "You Play to Win the Game" Edwards join the opposing cast in Quick Hit, which focuses on game preparation, playcalling, and player and franchise advancement as opposed to arcade running and passing action.

The coaches will head teams whose personnel and tactics conform to the types of teams they led in the NFL. Levy and Glanville, for example, would probably direct fast-paced offenses, the run and shoot for Glanville and a no-huddle pro set for Levy. Herm Edwards just plays to win the game. Hello?

OK, kidding. Quick Hit has had to put together more than 100 individual deals, the vast majority of them past players. (It's limited to using five current players by the NFLPA). These four coaches will add depth to the season simulation, said Jeffrey Anderson, the Quick Hit founder and former CEO of Turbine.

"Our users tell us they love testing their football skills against the true style of real coaches. We're all about coaching and strategy, and these four new coaches will bring even more authenticity to the single player experience," said Jeffrey Anderson, CEO at Quick Hit.

The game is free and open for signup to the general public.

Balloon Boy will test your knowledge of rudimentary game physics as you decide which gulls to avoid and which to shoot during a journey through the American news cycle.

Protips: You need two shots to kill a gull. Just one to pick up time and rainbow goodies. Only one shot on screen at a time

Balloon Boy was developed by Immad Akhund, Jude Gomila and James Smith, three 25-year-olds. The game's purpose seems to ask "How Many $$$ of Taxpayer Money Can you Waste?"

Balloon Boy Game - Waste Taxpayer Money! [site via Game Politics]

Free Realms' Super Spooktacular runs from October 14th through November 11th, at which point everyone will give up and start playing Modern Warfare 2. The spooktacular features decorations, daily trick or treating, special seasonal mini-games, new quests, and more than 35 new costumes for players and pets to dress up in. You gotta love a game that comes with animal costumes. Take that, World of Warcraft!

"We are celebrating the first Halloween in Free Realms, with weeks of spooky activities and festive live events," said Andy Sites, senior producer at Sony Online Entertainment. "After a night of trick-or-treating the fun doesn't have to end. Dressed as a chicken, mummy, witch or any of the other crazy costumes available, kids can explore virtual neighborhoods with millions of friends from the safety of their own home."

Those of you who've been following the site for a few years may remember my irrational love affair with the word spooktacular. This is why Free Realms' celebration gets mentioned. For celebration plans for the rest of SOE's MMO lineup, feel free to hunt for each individual website. Don't search for 'spooktacular.'

The game's free account mode limits players in classes, races and quests, which can be bought via microtransaction or though a full-boat $15 monthly subscription.

"We have a good chunk of the population that is spending more than $15 a month," said the Turbine executive producer Fernando Paiz. "The traditional subscription model can only make X dollars off a player. This kind of removes that cap.

"[Free players] get to try the game, not be constrained by a one-week trial, and then decide when they've made the commitment that they're engaged enough that they're ready to spend money," he added.

Dungeons and Dragons Online: Behold the Power of Free [Ars Technica via Evil Avatar]

After rigorous closed and open alpha and beta testing, THQ*ICE is ready to call Dragonica Online a game tomorrow, inviting new and current Dragonicans to participate in all sorts of special events, leading up to their first holiday event at the end of the month. Planned events include an Around the World in 80 Hours contest where players take screenshots of their journeys, posting them in the forums for a chance at prizes; the opening of the Emporia War Challenge, with the THQ*ICE guild taking on all comers in the first weekly battle for ownership of Emporia; the opening of the game's third dungeon; increased experience points and gold drops for the entire weekend; and the chance to win a collectible Dragonica Online Game Card by logging in every day between the 15th and 22nd.

For those unfamiliar with the game, think of it as a 3D version of Ragnarok Online, with adorable characters and arcade gameplay well-suited to game pad control. And it's free, so you might as well visit the game's website and try it out.

I've been following Earth Eternal for quite some time, and AJ recently had occasion to go hands-on with the game, dispelling worries that the game was for furries. After all, only 16 of the game's 22 player races are animals, with the rest made up of mythical beasts and machines with only a passing resemblance to people in animal costumes. The ancient beasts that man descended from have returned, and you take on the role of one of these, confronting dragons, fairies, gods, demons, and titans - you know, the usual.

The browser-based game is now available for all to play for free. Simply visit the game's official website and sign up for an account. I've signed up, but judging by my current schedule won't have time to actually play until sometime in 2011. Till then, I live vicariously through you.

Soccer comes to Free Realms in a big way with today's Goal Time update, which unlocks the various playing fields scattered across the land, allowing players to begin progressing in the Soccer Star job class. The update brings 20 new quests for the soccer aficionado, with new gear and equipment aimed at making the best of your footy career. Special skills and powerups will grant you an advantage on the playing field, as you test your skills against several AI teams or go 3-on-3 with a group of friends.

The Soccer Star job is available to free players up to level 5, with paying customers able to take their skills all the way up to the level 20 cap.

There are multipliers for speedy finishes, and objects that can temporarily shrink you, turn you into a ball so you may pass certain gates, or traps that significantly expand you as a penalty. A web cookie allows you to resume your progress later. Add in an excellent soundtrack and you have a great Sunday timewaster. Enjoy.

Growbox was developed by Flash Tangent.

Growbox [King.com]

Vogster, subject of some bad financial news recently, made the announcement Friday, also promising a large content update concurrent to the new free-to-play mode. Should you take advantage of the free mode, CrimeCraft hopes you'll want to get better weapons, items, cash and advancement by paying for one of its two subscription models.

CrimeCraft's gone off to some pretty poor reviews, so, just because something's free doesn't mean you have to buy it. Seen another way, at least the game is being offered for what it's worth.

CrimeCraft Goes Free to Play [EvilAvatar via Joystiq]

While Sega is handling the console versions of Planet 51, Zed has been busy on Planet 51 Online, perhaps the first licensed MMO to be available on or around the release of the film it is based on. Planet 51 Online is a free game that allows kids to create alien avatars, explore strange locales, and participate in mini-games with their friends and various strangers lurking about the internet.

It might not look like much from the screen or the first trailer, which can be found below, but it's for the children, and they won't mind. The game is set to launch sometime in November to coincide with the movie's release. Keep your eyes peeled at http://www.planet51online.com/ for more information.

The Battlefield Heroes community continues to grow in leaps and bounds, having added an additional 1 million players since the first million was announced back in June of this year. It turns out gamers love free things. They also love free updates to free things, and that's what EA is giving them with the "Heroes of the Fall" game update, due out September 30th, in celebration of this latest milestone.

The fall update includes changes to the gunner class that our resident BFH enthusiast Luke mentioned previously, a new ranking system, and a new fall-themed map that players can submit names for at the official website.

"Along with this new map, ‘Heroes of the Fall' includes a slew of changes including upgrades of the Gunner class and improvements to the friends system," said Ben Cousins, General Manager, Battlefield Heroes team. "We've also added a brand new ranking system for the game – players can earn cool new titles for their heroes as they play – showing everyone on the battlefield how dedicated they are."

Dedication comes quite easily when the price of entry is free. A lesson for all of us!

"I'd say, ‘I guess I didn't get that memo,'" said Anderson, CEO of Quick Hit Football, which will ramp up for the public as a free online game in October, advertising a combination of MMO and fantasy sports traits, and plant a flag in what Anderson considers huge customer territory, all without a full NFL license.

Foxborough, Mass.-based Quick Hit is a notable example of where the competition has flowed, like water finding gaps in the floorboards, in the fifth year of EA Sports' exclusive - and commonly reviled - licensing arrangement with the NFL. Quick Hit's zero-cost web-based game confronts EA Sports' Madden NFL franchise as a competitor where it suits them - price, download/file size, flat or unimpressive sales or platform absence. And in areas where Madden purely outclasses the startup - reputation, console presence or gameplay depth - Quick Hit then repositions itself as simply a free and casual alternative.

That said, "the NFL does add an air of authenticity," Anderson conceded. And were the opportunity available, his business would definitely be on the phone with the league. However, market research done by his company in its 18 months of existence found that fully-licensed authenticity does matter, but it is not a deal-killer, provided a challenger defines and pursues the territory correctly.

Anderson, in his forties, is the former CEO of the studio Turbine, and brings experience in dealing with high profile IPs. He said Quick Hit did two studies, of 1,000 guys each, about a year ago. "Both studied males in the 14 to 40 age range," Anderson said, "and we asked those questions, ‘Is the NFL important? How important are the players?'" Also, a few months back they put their product in front of a focus group and asked if it noticed the lack of real teams or licensing.

"We were surprised that there wasn't that sort of response," Anderson said. "We expected 90 percent to say, ‘You have to have the NFL.' It turned out to be a much lower number."

Anderson declined to say what percentage wanted the NFL, or if it was a majority. But it was low enough that his company went forward. "What we took away is that it's a valuable part, but it was not something that had to be included," he said, "and that's partly because we are not trying to appeal to the hardcore demographic. We're not trying to replace Madden as a product. But also, on the PC, they're not there."

Brandon Justice, the Quick Hit director of design and a veteran of Visual Concepts to 2005 and a producer in the Madden franchise to 2007, likens this to a pre-game matchup. No undersized team would run straight at a brick-wall defense up the middle. And yet no juggernaut can cover every gap.

But the objective is still there - end zone or audience - and then however it can be monetized. So a full license is a powerful means, but not the end, Anderson says. His company figures the casual/fantasy football crowd, multiples larger than a hardcore Madden installation base, is where the growth is. And he's running hard for it, in a free-to-play Web-based arena.

This is unlike many competitors in the Madden-exclusive era, which have gone after a slice of the console market, failed conspicuously, and have been all but driven into the wilderness. Midway's Blitz: The League, and its sequel, relied on outrageous subplots and scrotum-rupturing renegade appeal. Visual Concepts, the studio behind the much lamented ESPN NFL 2K5 - the last fully licensed title to compete with Madden - tried to hang in later with retired heroes John Elway, Barry Sanders and Jerry Rice in All Pro Football 2K8. All went straight into the value bin, and All-Pro closed after one year.

All-Pro Football 2K8 tried negotiating with retired players for their likeness on a one-on-one basis, to replace a standard roster. It was a Pyrrhic victory, paying a premium for Hall of Famers while telling customers they were getting yesterday's stars. Quick Hit went after current players on a one-by-one basis but found that such negotiations were capped by the NFL Players Association - they couldn't pursue individual deals with everyone, even if they had the time or money - so the company focused on licensing five current performers at commonly understood skill positions, offense and defense.

Another 100 all-time greats -outside the NFLPA's scope - round-out the lineup of likenesses. And like All-Pro 2K8, each deal had to be done individually, Anderson said, another opportunity cost posed by the lack of the license enjoyed by EA Sports. But unlike the console game, Justice argued this can still fit within Quick Hit's game design.

A fully draftable league could put superstars at every position and distort competitive balance, he said. Seeding a team with two all-pros or hall of famers and randomizing the rest of the lineup, according to team tendency, places more of a premium on playcalling, he said. and it encourages leveling up, either investing in players you have or discarding underachievers for ones with better potential. Plus, it keeps a diehard fan from being married to his franchise's awful history.

"If you're a Bengals fan, as I am," said Justice, the design chief, "they're terrible year in and out. On a console game, I can't make them into the team I want because of the roster they have at the beginning of the year."

Thus Quick Hit, whose closed beta is underway, focuses less on action and more on strategy, hoping to siphon from the millions in the fantasy football market who know more how to draft an elite running back but less how to weave him through the line off-tackle with a PS3 controller in Madden 2010. Games are won and lost against other players, or coaching AIs, according to a familiar fantasy-football scoring formula. Points earned from that can level up both players and the coach. Progress is maintained in a persistent league, somewhat like an MMO. If any of this fails to catch, here's the bottom line - Quick Hit tries to give a graphical representation to fantasy football, with play-calling thrown in.

The problem, of course, is Quick Hit seeks to do this without a full, accurate league roster, a fundamental of fantasy football. But Anderson and Justice are betting that the millions of hardcore NFL fans who play fantasy sports, and have no problem drafting superior players on competing teams, likewise won't balk at populating their squads with anonymous players with strong numbers.

All of this is conjecture. The casual, free-to-play market in the United States might present enormous growth but it is relatively unexplored - especially in sports - and is routinely shouted down by core players of any genre. Any game offered for free trails the assumption that it's not worth money, and therefore, not worth your time.

But in football, compared with a $60 title on a console, it's all you've got for now.

Stick Jockey is Kotaku's column on sports video games. It appears Saturdays at 10 a.m. U.S. Mountain time.

KingsIsle is decorating the world of Wizard City and promising a "special surprise" for all players of Wizard101 this month as they celebrate one year of card-based, free-to-play magic duels for the whole family. Response to the title has been overwhelming, with more than five million players signing up to give the game a spin since it launched in September of 2008.

"Quality family entertainment doesn't have to be expensive," said J. Todd Coleman, creative director of Wizard101. "The success of Wizard101 clearly shows that it is possible to produce a fun and challenging game that is both wallet-friendly and appropriate for all ages – and that it's something people are looking for in these tough economic times."

While I'm not sure these tough times are quite as tough as they were a year ago, there's definitely something to be said for a game you can sit down with your child and play until he or she gets so engrossed you can slip away to play big people games in the other room.

Following a preview week for VIP subscribers that indicated huge success for Turbine's new free-to-play, microtransaction-based structure, Dungeons & Dragons Online: Eberron Unlimited is now live for anyone who wishes to partake.

"Today Turbine changes the way gamers experience their online entertainment by providing them with a choice in how they pay and play for a premium MMO," said Jim Crowley, CEO of Turbine, Inc. "The DDO Unlimited Beta program has been a huge success and the initial response to the game from both press and players has been nothing short of phenomenal. In response, we have already more than doubled our capacity to handle the increased demand."

To play, simply head on over to www.ddo.com and download the game.

The BattleForge Renegade Edition card set is an expansion of the Renegade Campaign introduced earlier this year, which added the Southern Wastes region of Nyn to the game. The expansion brings two new support factions in the Bandits and Stonekin, plus a whole mess of legendary creatures and buildings to help bolster your line as you advance through the ranks.

The Renegade Edition cards are now available in the BattleForge in-game store, purchasable for $2.50 or 250 BattleForge points. Check out the game's official website to download and play for free.

League of Legends is an action-strategy game with roleplaying elements, fashion after the Warcraft III Defense of the Ancients game type. The player takes on a role of a Summoner, who calls forth a Champion to fight for him against other players. Riot has put a ton of work into developing the game, revealing new Champions on a regular basis and tightening up the graphics on level three, so the announcement that the game will be free-to-play comes as a bit of a surprise.

"One of our goals at Riot has been to set a high quality bar for core games that are available for free online as we believe that a relentless focus on delivering tremendous value to online communities will earn player loyalty," Brandon Beck, co-founder and CEO, Riot Games, said. "League of Legends is being built as a highly competitive core game that we believe will change many people's minds about the type and caliber of games that can be offered for free."

For those of you averse to not spending money, fear not! League of Legends has two currencies. Influence points are earned by simply playing the game, allowing players to purchase runes that will enhance their powers, much like experience points. Riot Points, on the other hand, are purchased using real currency and exchangeable for new Champions to play and cosmetic enhancements.

Riot Games is confident that their Riot Points won't be able to purchase anything that would give one player a distinct advantage over another. They'd best keep a close eye on Champion balance then, as players will eat them alive if they sense money gives their opponents any sort of leg up.

When the game goes live in September, players will be able to download and play for free, or they can opt to purchase the League of Legends Collector's Pack at their local game store, which offers exclusive Champion skins, new Champions, Riot Points, and Runes.

Interested in learning more? Riot Games will be hosting a Q&A session this Friday from 2-4PM Pacific, where developers will answer every question you can imagine in an exhaustive fashion.